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The Importance of 
Marking Historic Spots 

An Address 

By HENRY W. SHOEMAKER 




At Dedication of Marker 

Nittany Furnace, Near State College, Pa. 

October 30, 1922 



Tiihune Press 



Gift 






The Importance of Marking 
Historic Spots 

An Address by Henry W. Shoemaker 

Dr. Sparks, Dean Watts, Ladies and Gentlemen: 

Pr()l)al)ly the first attempts at marking historic spots in 
Pennsylvania were made by the Inchans many centuries ago. 
We of today are merely followers in their footsteps. Two of the 
most conspicuous examples are the hierogly])hic rocks (mi the 
Allegheny River, near Franklin, formerly called ''Venango", in 
Venango County, and the so-called Picture Rocks on Muncy 
Creek, in Lycoming County. Both were said to commemorate 
military victories, though the rocks on the Allegheny River were 
chiselled at a much earlier period than the mural ])aintings of 
Muncy Creek. The hieroglyphics are crude affairs, but the 
painting on the "Picture Rocks" were said to be of rare beauty 
and marvelous coloration. The rocks of the Allegheny River 
will defy time, but the rapacious lumbermen who insisted on 
running logs off the mountain top above the "Picture Rocks" at 
that particular spot destroyed forever this master-work of the 
redman's artistry. Unfortunately we do not know the particular 
events which these early memorials were supposed to commemo- 
rate. .All is shrouded in mystery so that the mere event of erect- 
ing and dedicating a marker does not insure its legend being 
permanent. W^hen the white men came on the scene the Indians 
renewed their earlier custom of carefully marking historic spots 
in several gruesome manners. After Major Grant's defeat in 175? 
in Western Pennsylvania the victorious Indians (they were on 
that occasion worthy of the appelation of savages) took partic- 
ular pleasure in beheading all dead Highlanders who had partici- 
pated in that unpleasant engagement, and impaling their heads, 
draped with caps and kilts, on the stakes which marked their 
race ground, as they called the |)ath where they made their 
enemies nm the gauntlet, near the stockade of 1^'ort Duquesne. 
This was their way of marking an historic spot, and it was also a 
war memorial to the Highlanders who they looked upon as their 



most dogged and unflinching foes. There was a kindly, ahnost 
fraternal feeling horn of the hardships of forest life among 
V'irginians, Royal Americans and Pennsylvania Riflemen re- 
cruited largely among the l)orderers and the redmen, hut the High- 
landers looked upon the Indians with an uncompromising hatred, 
and would give no quarter. When General Forhes' Scotch regi- 
ments approached the scene of this grisly memorial several months 
later they were shocked at the sight which met their eyes ; there 
was too much realism displayed hy the Indians in their choice 
of materials to mark that particular historic spot. It was 
the same as if the Allies had used German skulls instead of 
helmets to celehrate their victories! The Indians also had a 
hahit of marking the spots near where they scalped white vic- 
tims, their method heing to sink a tomahawk into the branches 
or trunk of a large tree for every white man scalped. Peter 
Grove, the Ranger, tells of surprising an Indian scalping party 
asleep under a giant oak on the hanks of Sinnemahoning Creek, 
in what is now Grove Township, Cameron County. On a branch 
which overhung the stream nine tomahawks were imbedded. 
Another method was to cut a nick or l)laze in the tree, and the 
white men went them one better by "nicking" their rifles and 
pistols. The venerable W. H. Sanderson, who resides near 
Mill Hall, Clinton County, says that he recalls that the rifle 
belonging to his grandfather, the noted scout and scalp-hunter, 
Robert Couvenhoven, who died in 1846, had thirteen nicks on 
the stock. It is generally supposed that Couvenhoven slew at 
least twice that number of redskins, as the bounty on Indian 
scalps was around $150 for an adult male and $50 for females 
and children, but he may have changed rifles as time went on. 
As Indians became scarcer and bounty funds non-available, the 
early white hunters adopted some of their tactics by blazing trees 
where they had made a big general killing of game or else some par- 
ticularly large elk or bear. They also nicked their rifles to mark 
the number of deer put to sleep. It was these sanguinary forms 
of human achievement which seemed alone worthy of commemo- 
ration in the bold life of the frontier. Little care was taken to 
distinguish the graves of the dead, at first a heap of stones to 
keep ofl^ wolves, later a stake, a shingle or a chunk of rough 
mountain stone seemed enough to mark the last resting places 
of the departed. In fact, there was an awful vacuum of nearly 
a century before marking historic spots came back into vogue in 



Pennsylvania, when there were no battles or butcheries, or big 
game slaughters worthy of i)erpetuation. Even the Civil War 
did not kindle the spirit of statues, markers and monuments to 
Pennsylvanians at once, not until other States began erecting 
monuments at ( Gettysburg, and then Pennsylvania lagged lament- 
ably. However, when at length the historic spirit was kindled 
the fervor of the peo]:)le have exceeded all Ixnuids. Pennsylva- 
nia is fast becoming the State of Memorials, and most of them 
are well worth while. Apart from the magnificent statues and 
other memorials at Gettysburg, Civil War heroes are remembered 
in all the cities of the State. Individual efiforts, or local skirm- 
ishes are also fittingly commemorated like the "high water mark" 
of General Pickett's charge at Gettysburg, and the '"b^irthest 
East" memorial at Wrightsville, formerly Dagonoga, where the 
Pennsylvania \"olunteers held back General (jordon's cavalry 
imtil the bridge across the Susquehanna was fired, and the val- 
uable stores in Lancaster County saved from the Confederate 
hordes. Churches all over the State contain medallions, tablets 
and stained glass windows in memory of devoted pastors, chtu"ch 
workers and churchly benefactors. Schools perpetuate the names 
of popular teachers, or great men, by their names, or by tablets 
placed in the halls or corridors. Hon. Gifford Pinchot wisely 
created the plan of naming groves of ancient trees after historic 
characters, like Alan Seeger Park, Joyce Kilmer Park and Ur. 
J. T. Rothrock Forest. But we are here today to speak of the 
most permanent form of all historical commemorating, the mark- 
ing of historical spots. It is not battlegrounds alone that will tell 
the history of our people in the years to come, but the landmarks 
of domestic activity, commerce and manufactures. It is fitting 
that an important stage in the industrial development of Penn- 
sylvania, like the charcoal iron furnaces should be marked. Every 
one of them, as far as known, should be as adequately commem- 
orated as is this one here today. It is astonishing how little is 
known concerning the charcoal iron industry, which is only 
now going out of existence. Centre County had one or two of 
these old furnaces, notably the one at Curtin. in operation until 
very recently. No general comprehensive history of this industry 
has ever been ptiblished ; it is kept alive l)y fragments of history, 
fugitive literary pieces, tradition, that is about all. Yet it was not 
only imi)ortant commercially, but historically valuable and pic- 
turesque from a social and literary viewpoint. These feudal 



lords, the Ironmasters, were the hig men of their day, the Schwabs, 
Donners and Replogles of an earher generation, yet how few of 
their names remain. It was timely to mark this old furnace, to 
save it from oblivion l)y reviewing its history and to inspire other 
communities to do likewise. Some are of unknown locations, and 
their names only remain on ])its of old stove plates. There is a 
rich field of research for the anticjuarian and writer, just to con- 
fine himself to the history of this charcoal iron industry. 

Perhaps the great American novel, the great Pennsylvania 
novel at any rate, will be a story laid al)OUt one of the baronial 
estates of the old Ironmasters. Was ever a more delightful, _ or 
perennially interesting book written than Georges Ohnet's novel, 
"Le Maitre des Forges", translated into English as "The Iron- 
master"? It was even more popular some years ago than today, 
for it was dramatized and played all over the United States, rival- 
ing "The Lights o' London" as a melodramatic success, and was 
also the name of a noted race horse. Surely this great novel of 
Pennsylvania will take its plot from the lives of our early Iron- 
masters, or in some sketch of Indian forays along the Blue Moun- 
tains of Berks County during the French and Indian War. If 
marking these old furnaces begets the great novel, then those 
devoted souls concerned in marking this historic spot today have 
builded better than they knew. It will serve as a landmark to link 
the earlier days of this part of Centre County, with its busy, teem- 
ing present, the great intense life of State College, and the 
industry of the olden times. They have one point in common. 
Old Nittany Mountain looks down on Ijoth, impartial in shedding 
her glories of sunlight and shade. Nittany Mountain is feminine, 
for she is named not for an Indian chief, but for two beautiful 
Indian maidens named Nita-nee, one a great war queen of the 
very long ago, the other a humbler maiden who lived not far 
from Penn's Cave, and was loved and lost by Malachi Boyer, a 
Huguenot pioneer from Lancaster County. And in closing let us 
say we hear a lot about a so-called Nittany Lion. Do we not 
mean "Mountain Lion" or panther, for in the old days the panther, 
or Pennsylvania lion, was very much in evidence hereabouts, 
roaring terribly at night from the mountain tops, answering one 
another from Tussey Knob, the Bald Top and Mount Nittany. 
It is the noble supple animal, the Pennsylvania king of beasts, 
and not the shaggy African man-eater, that should l)e the patron 



3if77-79 
55 



of the courage, force and persistence of ou" State College youth. 
If you are not sure of what it looked like, there is a finely mount- 
ed specimen in old "College Hall". Let us follow in history's 
paths, marking the worthy footste])s of our predecessors where 
they have huilded wisely, and always conforming to local color, 
local traditions, local ])ri(le. so that we may in our turn re-enact the 
splendid chain of destiny from redmen to ])ioneers, from farms, 
furnaces and mills, dcnvn to the great day of this localit\- when 
State College shall have realized the ideal of her founders, as the 
foremost inland school of learning. And every step made in that 
direction should he marked, as her leading friends and sons have 
done with the scene of this old-time industrial plant and furnace. 
All these are mile-stones in the greatness of Centre County and 
Penn State, in the creation of a definite tradition and legend, 
which shall he her crown. 













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